By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Two people have now been arrested in connection with the murder of Ariel Starcher, whose body was found in a bag alongside Vincent Road in southern Buchanan County about one year ago.
Buchanan County Sheriff Bill Puett reports in a news release that 22-year-old Taylor Stoughton of Willard was arrested in Independence Saturday. The Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department, the Lee’s Summit Police Department, and the Independence Police Department.
Puett says citizen tips led to the arrest of 29-year-old Marcus Brooks on Sunday afternoon by the Independence Police Department. Puett had requested the public’s help in locating Brooks, known to have lived and frequented the Platte City area, after the arrest of Stoughton.
The body of Ariel Anne-Rae Starcher of Independence was discovered when a road crew with the Missouri Department of Transportation spotted a bag in the ditch of Vincent Road south of Faucett on February 18th of last year. The road crew became suspicious and called in Buchanan County Sheriff’s Deputies to investigate. The deputies discovered Starcher’s body in the bag. Starcher was 21.
Identifications in this article have been updated.